Winemaking

A Year Filled With Change

April 14, 2023 16:48

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April is Down to Earth Month, and as a winery committed to sustainability, we wanted to take a moment to reflect on our efforts to protect the environment. Our winery has undergone some major changes this year, including the renovation of our hospitality grounds and refreshed our tasting room with a new look. We've created a warm and inviting atmosphere for our guests to relax and enjoy our wines.

But that's not all! We're thrilled to announce that we're continuing to introduce our new labels, starting with our 2022 Giovanni & Giulia Sauvignon Blanc and soon our 2022 Rosé. These new labels are sleek, modern, and embody the essence of our winery, embracing our Italian heritage.

And now, onto the big news. Starting with the release of our 2021 cork-finished red wines, we'll no longer be using capsules on our wine bottles. We've realized that these have a significant impact on the environment. Most capsules are not biodegradable and end up in landfills where they can take hundreds of years to decompose.

We're taking a stand for sustainability and taking small steps like eliminating capsules to make a big impact on the environment. Our bottles will still be sealed with high-quality corks to maintain the freshness and flavor of our wines. By doing so, we'll be reducing our carbon footprint and investing more in our cork supply chain to ensure that our corks are of the highest quality.

Small steps like these can help to preserve the natural beauty of our region for generations to come. Come on over and see our changes for yourself, and let's celebrate Down to Earth Month together! Join us in our efforts as we find ways to take care of Mother Earth.

Tags: Dry Creek Valley, Tasting Room, Rosé, Sauvignon Blanc, Winemaking
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Seasons in The Cellar: Scale House

August 18, 2022 10:43

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Montse walks us through the scale house as we prepare for harvest.

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Tags: Winemaking, Harvest 2022, Dry Creek Valley, Pedroncelli, Sonoma County, Wine, Seasons in The Cellar
Categories: Seasons in The Cellar
Seasons In The Cellar: Summer Edition

July 25, 2022 09:00

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As harvest is fast approaching in our Dry Creek vineyards, our winemaking team and cellar crew prep all of the empty tanks to make room for a new vintage. It's the calm before the storm.

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Tags: Pedroncelli, Dry Creek Valley, Harvest 2022, Sauvignon Blanc, wine, Winemaking
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What is Grape Veraison

July 21, 2022 12:34

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UNDERSTANDING GRAPE VERAISON

Each summer, grapes begin to change color in our Dry Creek Valley zinfandel vineyards. Grape veraison is the beginning of ripening, when red grapes change from green to purple colors. Veraison usually begins in July during moderate weather years, but in cooler vintages, zinfandel grapes don’t start changing color until late July, even early August at times. During ideal weather conditions, the time from coloration to harvest is typically about forty-five days.

There’s much more to grape veraison than the fascinating color change we can see with our eyes. To allow vines to focus all their energy into the existing clusters hanging on their shoots, the grapes cease growing during this period of their lifecycle. This allows sugars to increase and acids to decrease.

WHY EVEN GRAPE VERAISON IS IMPORTANT

Winemakers want the grape clusters to go through veraison quickly, because the uniformity of coloring within the clusters equals uniform flavors at harvest time. Being able to harvest uniformly ripened grapes is one of the keys to making a velvety, balanced Pedroncelli Zinfandel. If some grapes in the clusters are under-ripe, some perfect and some overripe, the finished wine will express some combination of too dry, too fruity and even too hot or high in alcohol. Only uniformly colored zinfandel grapes can make a balanced, smooth wine.

ADDRESSING UNEVEN COLORS DURING VERAISON

The warmer the weather, the more likely the grapes will change colors swiftly and uniformly. So, what does a winemaker do when the grapes change color unevenly? At Pedroncelli, we wait until veraison has taken 80% effect on our zinfandel vineyards, then we’ll start to trim off the “wings” and clusters that are still green. This sacrifice ensures the remaining grapes on the vine develop consistent flavors which will translate later into the wine.

Here's an example of a cluster with a “wing.” A wing is a small bunch that shares the same shoot as a fuller cluster.

During ideal growing seasons, moderately warm temperatures help veraison happen at a perfect pace. Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes start changing color in Dry Creek Valley during July and August, depending on when vineyard pruning occurred and the microclimate of each vineyard. In an average year, Pedroncelli’s Dry Creek vineyards complete veraison over two to three weeks.

DO GRAPES CHANGE COLOR AT DIFFERENT TIMES?

Different red grapes varieties go through veraison at different times. Just like during harvest, we don’t always pick the same grapes at the same time. It is spread out over several weeks. If Zinfandel is in veraison now, then we’ll be picking about the second week of September. Cabernet Sauvignon on the other hand has not even started veraison and we’ll expect to pick these grapes at the end of September or beginning of October. It always depends on the weather between now and then too.

Follow us on social media to stay up to date with our harvest season.

Tags: Pedroncelli, Zinfandel, Sonoma County, Dry Creek Valley, Mother Clone, wine, Winemaking, Follow the Vineyard, vineyard, Harvest 2022
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Winemaking

A Year Filled With Change

Seasons in The Cellar: Scale House

Seasons In The Cellar: Summer Edition

What is Grape Veraison

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